single source docs (rather long)Dec 1995

[David Blyth <dblyth -at- QUALCOMM -dot- COM>]

Hi All;

I'm on digest, so sorry if some of these topic have already
been covered.

>if we provide .PDF files to customers, we have no control
>over the final product, and, at the very least, 18X23 pages
>printed onto A4 or B5 paper will look rather strange

Come again?  PDF files are read only - you control everything.
There's probably also a way to control the page size in Acrobat
(it's a very complete product).

>some of the docs can be provided on the Web, other more
>sensitive ones cannot.

You can password files on the Web, or simply decide which
files to put out there.

Acrobat's fundamental problem is that it's pretty slow -
both to upload the file and to read the document.  On
the other hand, read only files are useful for CM and
other aspects.

Acrobat 2.0 allows you to write PDF files with pointers out
to the Web.  When an HTML file is hit, Acrobat 2.0 calls
Netscape - assuming the customer has it - and the customer
now has Netscape and Acrobat running simultaniously.

Netscape 1.X uses the same trick in reverse, calling Acrobat
every time it hits a PDF file.  Better yet, Netscape 2.0
has an Acrobat plug-in - when Netscape 2.0 (with the plug-in)
hits a PDF file, it simply reads it (WITHOUT calling Adobe
Acrobat).  One senses a corporate deal here....

>ANY ideas, insights, opinions, experiences, anecdotes on these >issues are most
 welcome.

I wrote an internal QUALCOMM memo comparing Acrobat 2.0
to Netscape 2.0 a month or two back.  I can post a bit more
info here if there's sufficient interest, or you can contact
me direct.  (Most of my memo simply summarizes publically
available info.  Still, it _was_ an internal memo, so I
can't post it as written).

I've also worked with some of the same issues on my job,
so feel free to write.

David (The Man) Blyth
Technical Writer
QUALCOMM

Standard Disclaimers apply.